Cherry Blossom Festival - Schedule of Events

2002 Schedule of Events. This is a schedule of events, along with speakers information, links to web sites for sponsors/organizations visited and some photographer notes. Each section also has links directly to the coresponding photo albums. Photos are available from almost every event listed.

Go directly to each day: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

Sunday, March 31, 2002

11:30 am, Orientation at the JW Marriott. The Orientation was pretty simple so there are not many photos here. Just general candid shots throughout the morning as we heard information about how things would work this week.


3:00 pm, Lantern Lighting Ceremony. The Lantern Lighting Ceremony was suppose to be held outdoors at the old stone lantern near the Jefferson Memorial under the Cherry Blossom Trees. However, the weather was bad that day so it was moved into the ballroom at the JW Marriott.


5:00 pm, Family Night at Nick’s Nightclub in Alexandria, VA. One comment in the past seemed to have been that the Princesses wanted a night of fun rather than always such formal receptions or something. So it was arranged to take them to Nicks Niteclub for C/W dance lessons and dinner. Look close and you will see some of the NCSS organizers in these pictures dancing! The Princesses seemed to have had fun and while few of them knew how to do a two-step, the floor was packed for the Electric Slide and Macarana.

DJ: Terry Siebel. Dance Instructor: Barry Howerton. Site: http://www.NicksNiteClub.com Dinner: Compliments of NCSS

Monday, April 1, 2002

8:00 am, Washington Post Newspaper. The first stop of the day was at the Washington Post.com where the Princesses saw a live broadcast, great view of DC and then met with two employees. Mary Moslander, Vice President and General Manager of Jobs, Cars, & Real Estate at Washington Post and Newsweek Interactive and Liddy Manson, VP of Business Development. Quiz time -- can anyone remember the three things you were suppose to come away from this with?
Sites: WashingtonPost.com and WashingtonJobs.com.




10:00 am, Kennedy Center. Mickey Berra gave a Behind the Scenes Tour at the Kennedy Center talking about its history, productions, future changes and even tried a couple shots of basketball backstage.
Site: http://www.Kennedy-Center.org.


12:00 noon, Lunch at the Canadian Embassy. Margarita Kergin, Wife of the Canadian Ambassador to the US, gave a talk about the Role as spouse of an Ambassador to the US. Lunch was provided compliments of The Canadian Club.
Sites: http://www.canadianembassy.org and http://www.canclubdc.org.

Photographer's Notes: The first 4 pictures in this album were taken of the US Capitol from the bus on the ride there.


2:15 pm, NASA Tour at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Susan Kilrain, (Commander, USN) Astronaut, talked about piloting two missions on the Shuttle, the types of research they do, fun in zero G and showed a video about her trips. David Fair and Dhyan (DJ) Emmanuel then provided tours of one of the engineering building showing where they have mock ups of the shuttle for testing and have various machines for stress testing satellites.
Site: http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov

Photographer's Notes: I took photos during Susan Kilrain's video to have a reminder of things we saw during the day. However, these are pictures of a video so they will probably not make great prints, but they are still included here on the web page. Also, I was not allowed to use a flash for pictures inside the engineering building, so many of the photos from the second half of this album take on a strange color, are slightly blurry and have odd shadows since the only lighting was from above (giving people raccoon eyes sometimes). I can try to edit these a little if someone wants to order any, but they will not be as good as if I could have used a flash. We were told flash photography would interfere with some of the equipment/tests inside. See the Group Photos page for samples of how well these can be edited.


6:00 pm, Mayor’s International Taste of Washington, DC. Mayor Williams showed up for pictures and introductions at the International Taste of Washington DC. There was great food, demonstrations by several dance teams, representatives and food from many countries. Site:
Site: http://dc.gov/mayor/index.htm.

Photographer's Notes: Unfortunately by the time Mayor Williams arrived for a group shot on the steps out front with all of the Princesses, the sun had just gone down. This presented a problem with lighting since I did not have a ladder and extra lights. However, I was able to correct the problems with a little digital editing. See the edited vesion of the group shot with the Mayor on the Group Photos page.

Tuesday, April 2, 2002

7:00 am, Good Morning America appearance from the Tidal Basin. The Queens and Princesses made an appearance on ABC's Good Morning America with weather man Tony Perkins.
Sites: http://www.abc.com, http://abcnews.go.com/sections/GMA/index.html.

Photographer's Notes: I think this set contains the best photos of the Princesses. It was a bit cool outside, but the sky was clear and there was no wind leaving the water of the Tidal Basin clear and reflecting the Jefferson Memorial. As we waited around for the TV crew, I took shots of the Princesses by the Cherry Blossom trees. This was the only chance I had to actually get photos of the Princesses with Cherry Blossom Trees the entire week since the Lantern Lighting Ceremony was rained out. I only had about 30 minutes to quickly pose and shoot each one before they were called back to set up for GMA. If I had more time and an assistant, I probably could have done a better job with posing, but I had less than a minute with each. I am just thankful for the good weather we had and chance to get these photos!


8:30 am, The Woman’s Memorial and Rose Laying with breakfast. Speakers: Brig. General Wilma Vaught and Lt. Col. Birdwell (Pentagon Burn victim) with invocation by Father Coughlin and music provided by West Springfield High School Madrigal Singers. Flowers provided by Monterary Rose and breakfest by Krispy Kreme.
Sites: http://www.womensmemorial.org, http://www.krispykreme.com.


10:15 am, Supreme Court Visit. Cristy Cherry, provided brief history of the court and how it works. Chief Justice William Rehnquist then talked with the Princesses. Site: http://www.supremecourtus.gov.

Photographer's Notes: Unfortunately I was not allowed to take pictures inside. Since there was nothing I could do (and I was living on 3 to 4 hours sleep each night), I took a nap in the bus. It is my understanding that the court had their own photographer and that pictures from the court would be mailed directly to the Queens and Princesses.


12:00 noon, Lunch at the American Trucking Association. Lunch was provided compliments of NCSS at the American Trucking Association just down the road from the Capitol. Since there was no speaker and I doubted people wanted pictures of Princesses digging into countless pizzas, I left the camera off for once.
Sites: American Trucking Association and NCSS.


2:15 pm, National Museum of the American Indian Resource Center. The Princesses went on a tour of the National Museum of the American Indian Resource Center which is part of the Smithsonian Institute. Tour guides: George Horsecapture, Mark Clark, Pat Nietfeld and joined by the Museum's photographer, Katherine Fogden.
Site: http://www.americanindian.si.edu.


4:00 pm, Cherry Blossom Tent: Photo Opportunity for the Press. The Queens and Princesses went to the Jefferson Memorial for photo ops with the press and to meet tourists. They gave out and signed a lot of event programs as tourists keep looking for the representative from their home state.

Photographer's Notes: The first dozen pictures in the album are of the police escort the Princesses received everywhere they traveled. These two officers on motorcycles were amazing, cutting through traffic, clearing cars, waving us through intersections and even going the wrong way down streets when necessary to ensure that we made it to each event on time even in the middle of rush hour traffic. By the end of the week, we were quite spoiled by our personal escort... We had to get their photos. I also quickly took pictures of helicopters passing by. You never know when one will be the President's so I would shoot them when they passed and see if I got anything interesting later. These were not his though.


6:00 pm, Reception at the Official Residence of the Japanese Ambassador. This was a reception hosted at the residence of the Japanese Ambassador to the US.
Biography: http://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/embassy/ambassador.htm.





Wednesday, April 3, 2002

8:00 am, Corcoran Gallery of Art: Jacqueline Kennedy exhibit. Speaker: David Levy, Museum Director.
Site: http://www.corcoran.org.

Photographer's Notes: Unfortunately I was not allowed to take pictures in the exhibit. I tried to get group pictures on the stairs inside but the lighting was very bad for such a large shot. I rigged a couple of lights in the background and tried again at the end of the tour. I was able to salvage some of the shots with a little digital editing. See the Group Photos page for samples of how well these can be edited.


10:00 am, Tree Planting at Kennedy Institute and Visit to the Hospital for Sick Children. Half of the princesses went to a Tree planting at the Kennedy Institute and half went to the Hospital for Sick Children. Princesses brought Campbell Soup labels, beverage can pull tops, General Mills "stamps", Ty Beanie Babies, crayons and colored paper for each. Speaker at the Kennedy Institute: Michael Ward, President. Speaker at the Hospital for Sick Children: Rhonda Williams, Assistant Medical Director. Cherry Tree donated by the Illinios State Society. I went to the Kennedy Center and do not have pictures from the Hospital for Sick Children since these events were at the same time.
Sites: http://www.kennedyinstitute.org, http://www.hfscsite.org, http://www.campbellsoup.com/ http://www.generalmills.com, http://www.ty.com/.


11:30 am, Cherry Blossom Luncheon. A luncheon at the JW Marriott with performance by the Sakura Children’s Choir from Potomac, Maryland. Susan Neely, Special Assistant to President of the United States and Senior Director of Communications for Homeland Security spoke about Homeland Security. A special presentation by Clifton Truman Daniel, Harry Truman's grandson, Director of Public Relations, Harry Truman Community College, Chicago, Illinois and member of the Board of Directors at the Harry S. Truman Library, http://www.trumanlibrary.org.

Photographer's Notes: Yes, this album contans more pictures of the police escort taken from the front of a bus on the way back to the hotel for the luncheon. I liked these since it had the US Capitol in the background. Unfortunately I missed the shot of a motorcycle office standing up on his cycle while going through a red light, both hands held out to the sides to either tell on coming traffic to stop or just showing off that he can ride hands free...


1:45 pm, National Geographic: Women of the National Geographic. Speakers: Betty Hudson, Senior VP of Communications; Kathy Moran, Photo editor; Sylvia Earle, Explorer-in-Resident.
Site: http://www.ngs.org.

Photographer's Notes: Originally I took about 20 pictures of the speakers at this event. There was nothing else to see and we did not stop for a group photo so I did not have much here. Unfortunately I accidentally deleted the images from the camera that day before saving them to my computer.


3:15 pm, Old Executive Office Building Karen Hughes, Counselor to the President, was scheduled to speak, but was called away at the last minute. Instead we got a group shot on the steps at the Old Executive Building and then some Princesses posed in front of the West Wing at the White House.
Sites: http://www.WhiteHouse.gov.


Evening, State & Territorial Society Receptions and Sushi and Sake Reception. In the evening, Princesses went to different receptions. No photos are available from these receptions.

Thursday, April 4, 2002

8:30 am, National Cathedral tour and tree planting. Dedication of the Weeping Cherry Tree in Memory of September 11th 2001 with the All Hallows Guild. Dedication and Blessing by Rev. Canon Elton I. Smith, Jr. Speakers: Clifton Truman Daniel, Harry Truman's grandson, and Patricia Beatty, President of the All Hallows Guild. Breakfest compliments of Marvelous Markets.
Site: http://www.cathedral.org/cathedral/, http://www.cathedral.org/cathedral/support/ahg.shtml.

Photographer's Notes: Some of the photos from inside the Cathedral may have slightly odd colors or not be as sharp as most. The Cathedral is so large that a flash is not always able to illuminate the back wall when taking a picture. There are ways of dealing with this, but I did not have a tripod with me to steady the camera during longer exposures... still most of them look good for 4x6's or 5x7's at least. Check with me before ordering if you are not sure and want me to check the suitability of any particular images for printing.


10:30 am, Unveiling of the new State Postage Stamps. Unveiling of "Greetings from..." State Stamps with all of the Princesses at the National Postal Museum. Speakers: Allen Kane, director of the National Postal Museum; Deborah Willhite, Senior VP for Government & Public Relations; Anita Dzitto, chief Marketing Officer; Clifton Truman Daniel, Harry Truman's grandson.
Sites: http://www.usps.gov, http://www.si.edu/postal, http://www.greetingsfromamerica.com.


12:30 pm, Reception & Lunch at the Hungarian Embassy. Speaker: Géza Jeszenszky, Ambassador of Hungary to the United States of America.
Site: http://www.hungaryemb.org.

Photographer's Notes: I also took pictures of our two bus drivers for the week at the beginning of this album: Bill Robey and Sam Crawford.


2:15 pm, The Brookings Institution. Speakers: Ron Nessen, VP Communications; Andrea Kane, Scholar on Welfare Reform/Teen Pregnancy; Amy Liu, Urban Center; and Roberta Cohen, Sr. Fellow, Humanitarian & Refugee.
Site: http://www.Brookings.edu.

Photographer's Notes: We took a group shot outside, but were about a half hour behind schedule with Congressmen waiting on us, and I did not want to delay the group any more. I did not have the right lens on my camera to take such a wide group shot, but I did take several shots in a row and will attempt to digitally stitch them together to make a wide print of the group shot if possible. This will be posted in the Group Shots album later.


4:30 pm, Photo on House Steps and Congressional Reception at the US Botanic Gardens. The Princesses met with Congressmen Barton & Clement for photos on the steps of the US Captiol and then had a private tour and talk on the House Floor. The Congressional Reception at the newly rennovated US Botanic Garden with a Japan Tea Ceremony Demonstration and special presentation on the 50th Anniversary of the charter for NCSS. Princesses were introduced with their escorts and met with the Japanese Ambassador to the US.
Sites: http://www.aoc.gov/USBG/usbg_overview.htm, http://www.aoc.gov/cc/cc_overview.htm, http://www.us.emb-japan.go.jp/, NCSS.

Photographer's Notes: This was an interesting evening. First, the group shots on the steps of the Capitol did not turn out as well as I had hoped, but I will try to fix the exposure in PhotoShop... I had wanted to take the Princesses around to the other side of the Capitol so they were in the sun, but instead we had to do it at this location where they were in shade and the sky above the building was very bright. I was able to correct the exposure/colors with a little digital editing. See the Group Photos page for samples of how well these can be edited.

The most interesting point of the night of course was having a fairly new and expensive camera system suddenly lock up in the middle of the Princesses and their escorts being introduced and awaiting their picture being taken with the Japanese Ambassador to the US. Of course my primary and backup memory cards failed and I did not have my backup camera with me since I was trying to travel lite that evening. Was it stressful having a whole reception with Princesses, Congressmen and Ambassadors waiting on me to fix something I could not fix? Just a little... This is why photography is still just a hobby for me. I cannot afford a second digital SLR camera like this for backup yet! Oh well, live, suffer through intense emotional stress and learn. In the end it was a fun evening. I think I lost lost 2 or 3 shots due to the malfunction. Fortunately, a very kind spectator handed me her camera and a few roles of film to finish the shooting the introductions (Thank you!). These shots are listed out of order in the photo album. Look for the 80 remaining shots at the end of the album.

Friday, April 5, 2002

8:00 am, National Zoo Visit. The Princesses went on a tour at the National Zoo, to visit the Ape House, the baby Elephant, and Giant Pandas. Unfortunately the Pandas were not very cooperative and stayed away, but the Apes were very friendly. Escorts and Speakers: Mike Morgan, Sharon Wright, Lise Stevens, Sean Royals.
Site: http://www.nationalzoo.si.edu.


10:00 am, Cherry Blossom Riverboat Luncheon Cruise. Charlotte Hall, proprietor of the Potomac Riverboat Company, provided a complimentary luncheon on the Cherry Blossom River Boat for the Princesses. The Cherry Blossom is a re-creation of a 19th century Victorian riverboat which sails out of Old Town Alexandria and is available for special events. NCSS wishes to thank Charlotte and Occasional Caterers for their gracious contribution to the Princess Program each year by donating this event. Entertainment by The Hullabahoos from UVA. Cruise and Luncheon donated by the Potomac Riverboat Company and Occasional Caterers.
Sites: http://www.potomacriverboatco.com, http://www.hullabahoos.com.


1:00 pm, Complementary Hair and Makeovers. The Princesses were provided with complimentary hair and make overs before the Grand Ball. As the photographer, I was busy setting up for portraits and did not want to get in the way of a room full of people trying to get through 60-some make overs in just a few hours. While I did not get any photos of these works in progress, you can see plenty of them in the next two photo albums. Services provided: Hair and make-up by Graham Webb International Academy of Hair, Arlington, VA; Make-up provided by Sephora, located in Bethesda Maryland.
Sites : http://www.grahamwebb.com/, http://www.sephora.com


5:30pm, Group Photo and Princess Portraits. This album contains a group photo of all of the Queens and Princesses before the Grand Ball on the steps in the lobby at the JW Marriott followed by quick portrait shots of each couple. During the Grand Ball, anyone could come back up to the studio for additional portraits.
Site: http://www.RayBowersPhotography.com.

Photographer's Notes: Remember that all of the portraits will be edited before sent out for orders. Some of the images have some dust from the lens in the photo and many you can see the edges of the backdrop supports in the background. These are both things easily taken care of when edited during order processing. Unfortunately we were in such a rush to get the Princesses through so they could go down to be introduced that we were unable to really do much more than a couple quick shots of each couple. It was safer to take a fairly wide angle shot quickly and crop when someone orders a picture rather than risk taking a shot too close and not getting a good picture due to short time. If you are not happy with a portrait here, remember to try and check the "9 - Good Morning America" and "21 - Unveiling of State Stamp" photo albums which also have some very good posed photos of each Princess. I am sorry for the lack of real quality time with each couple.


8:00 pm, Grand Ball/Gala with Sushi Reception. The Grand Ball where a wheel is spun to pick the new 2002 Cherry Blossom Queen. Leslie Braitsch of Virginia was the first runner up. Elizabeth O’Connor of Connecticut became the new Queen for 2002 and will represent the US to the Japanese Cherry Blossom Fetival in May. Sponsors: K. Mikomoto & Co, American Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Sapporo Breweries.
Sites: http://www.mikimotoamerica.com, http://www.aa.com, http://www.sapporousa.com/, http://svc.ana.co.jp/eng/index.html.


Saturday, April 6, 2002

9:30 am, National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade. The Princesses walked in the parade down Constitution Avenue, each with flag bearer. The new 2002 Cherry Blossom Queen (Connecticut) and 1st Runner Up (Virginia) traveled on the float with the 2002 Japanese Cherry Blossom Queen and Goodwill Ambassadors.


12:00 noon, Sakura Matsuri Festival. The Sakura Matsuri Festival is sponsored by the Japan-America Society.
Site: http://www.us-japan.org/dc/.



Copyright © 2000-2002 Ray Bowers. All rights reserved.
Ray Bowers Photography / ray@bowers.com / April 17, 2002